‘Shine bright like a diamond!’: is research on high-functioning ADHD at last entering the mainstream?

Abstract

The paper by Greven and colleagues (this issue) is intensifying discussion how research on attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) can be moved away from the deficit-focused view to a concept, which is oriented towards resources a patient might be able to recruit to function at a high-level despite impairments. To promote understanding of high-functioning (HF)-ADHD, more longitudinal studies are required employing neuropsychologic, neuroimaging and neurobiologic approaches, with focus on compensatory mechanisms during fronto-striatal-amygdala maturation and adult plasticity as well as epigenetic modification marker screening strategies to identify homoeostatic processes of resilience in endophenotypic traits related to coping styles of target groups.